MINSK, 15 October (BelTA) – Plans have been made to amend the legislation on border security and relax the rules regulating access to the border zone for foreigners, BelTA learned from Vladimir Bazanov, Deputy Chairman of the National Security Commission of the House of Representatives of the National Assembly of Belarus.
The bill suggests allowing foreigners to travel in transit via the border zone to sanatoriums and resorts and use motorway service outlets in the border zone without border passes. The move is expected to bolster the tourism appeal of the facilities located in the border zone.
Plans have also been made to expand the list of documents, which allow Belarusian citizens, foreign citizens, and stateless persons, who permanently live in Belarus, to stay in the border zone. For now the list includes passports, residence permits, and birth certificates (for the underage).
While relaxing some regulations, the bill provides for bolstering border security. Officers of the Belarusian border service will be able to determine not only where people and vehicles can enter the border zone but also how long they can stay there. Apart from that, the bill provides for the possibility of border control procedures using automated solutions such as a digital gate, which has been used by the Minsk National Airport since 2015 as an experiment.
The amendments are designed to facilitate the border crossing experience and encourage the adoption of information technologies by the Belarusian border service.
The border zone is the land adjacent to the state border (up to 30km away from the border on the average). The border belt is the land adjacent to the state border (up to 10km away on the average). Border security structures and installations are located in this strip of land.
